The image above is a sample of what a Word Cloud should look like.
Lesson Title:
Feelings/Emotions
Subject Area:
English
Grade Level:
Tenth
Unit Title:
Themes in The Giver by Lois Lowry
HSCE:
CE 1.2.2 Write, speak, and visually represent to develop self-awareness and insight (e.g., diary, journal writing, portfolio self-assessment). CE 2.1.7 Demonstrate understanding of written, spoken, or visual information by restating, paraphrasing, summarizing, critiquing, or composing a personal response; distinguish between a summary and a critique. CE 2.2.2 Examine the ways in which prior knowledge and personal experience affect the understanding of written, spoken, or multimedia text.
NETS-S:
2.b. Communicate information and ideas effectively to multiple audiences using a variety of media and formats 2.a. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital environments and media 5.b. Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity
Essential Questions:
What is love? What is hate? What is the importance of having emotions? Why does Jonas’ society keep its citizens from feeling love/hate?
Objectives:
Students will imagine a world without feelings or emotions and write about what this world might be like in their reading journals. Then, students will create a Word Cloud by typing out their journal response in the appropriate place on the Wordle website. Next, students will write a response to the following questions: Why do you think the big words in your Word Cloud are big? Why do you think the small words are small? Word Clouds will then be printed and displayed in the classroom.
Tools and Resources:
Internet capable computers
Wordle website
Blackboard website
A copy of The Giver by Lois Lowry
Printer
Reading Journal
Rationale:
This lesson will allow students to apply their own experiences with emotions to the The Giver. Also, it will encourage them to use their imaginations. The assignment will force them to make connections between their own words in their journal and the representation of these words in the Word Cloud.
Sequence of Activities:
Anticipatory Questions/Activity:
Students will be given ten minutes to write a response in their reading journals to the following prompt: What would the world be like without feelings and emotions? Would it be cold? Would people be happier? The teacher will ask that this journal response is at least one page.
Body of Lesson Plan: Segment #1
The teacher will then move the class to the computer lab where the Wordle website will be explained. Students will then type out their journal entry into the Wordle website to create their own Word Cloud. These will be printed out.
Segment #2
After the Word Clouds have been created the teacher will ask the students to respond to the following questions in short essay form. Why do you think the big words in your Word Cloud are big? Why do you think the small words are small? What does this tell you about your journal response? The students will be required to make a connection to the feelings they wrote about in their entry and how they are displayed in the Word Cloud. This short essay will be due the following day.
Segment #3
On day two after the students have handed in their essays, they will hang their Word Clouds up in the classroom. The teacher will give the students five minutes to look at their fellow classmates’ Word Clouds. Students will then be asked to return to their seats and the teacher will call on students to answer the following questions: What were some of the differences/similarities you see between your own Word Cloud and those of your classmates? Were you surprised by which words were small or large? Why or why not? Student answers may vary for both of the above questions. Do you think hate would still exist if love did not? Student will reply yes or no and will then be asked to explain. How closely do you think love and hate are related? A possible student answer may be that one cannot exist without the other. Would you want to live in a place with no hate even if it meant there would be not love either? Student answers may vary. Why do you think Jonas’ society chose to eliminate true emotions? Student may reply that his society thought it would be a simpler way to live.
Segment #4
Step 1: Students write a page response in their reading journals to the prompt: What would the world be like without feelings and emotions? Would it be cold? Would people be happier? Step 2: Students will type this response in the space provided on the Wordle website. Step 3: Students can choose colors to design their Word Cloud the way they would like. Step 4: Students will print out their Word Clouds. Step 5: Next, students will respond in short essay form to the folowing prompt: Why do you think the big words in your Word Cloud are big? Why do you think the small words are small? What does this tell you about your journal response? The students will be required to make a connection to the feelings they wrote about in their entry and how they are displayed in the Word Cloud. Step 5: The students will hang their Word Clouds in the classroom.
Lesson Plan 1 RB
Lesson Plan 2 RB
Lesson Plan 3 RB
Lesson Plan 4 RB
Lesson Plan 5 RB
The image above is a sample of what a Word Cloud should look like.
CE 2.1.7 Demonstrate understanding of written, spoken, or visual information by restating, paraphrasing, summarizing, critiquing, or composing a personal response; distinguish between a summary and a critique.
CE 2.2.2 Examine the ways in which prior knowledge and personal experience affect the understanding of written, spoken, or multimedia text.
2.a. Interact, collaborate, and publish with peers, experts, or others employing a variety of digital
environments and media
5.b. Exhibit a positive attitude toward using technology that supports collaboration, learning, and productivity
Segment #1
What were some of the differences/similarities you see between your own Word Cloud and those of your classmates?
Were you surprised by which words were small or large? Why or why not?
Student answers may vary for both of the above questions.
Do you think hate would still exist if love did not?
Student will reply yes or no and will then be asked to explain.
How closely do you think love and hate are related?
A possible student answer may be that one cannot exist without the other.
Would you want to live in a place with no hate even if it meant there would be not love either?
Student answers may vary.
Why do you think Jonas’ society chose to eliminate true emotions?
Student may reply that his society thought it would be a simpler way to live.
Step 2: Students will type this response in the space provided on the Wordle website.
Step 3: Students can choose colors to design their Word Cloud the way they would like.
Step 4: Students will print out their Word Clouds.
Step 5: Next, students will respond in short essay form to the folowing prompt: Why do you think the big words in your Word Cloud are big? Why do you think the small words are small? What does this tell you about your journal response? The students will be required to make a connection to the feelings they wrote about in their entry and how they are displayed in the Word Cloud.
Step 5: The students will hang their Word Clouds in the classroom.